5 Things to Do in Lindos

31 May, 2016

Lindos=Lindo (from Spanish – pretty)

LINDOS is one of the most popular and picturesque villages of Rhodes island. In all guidebooks and travel magazines, Lindos will be mentioned as a “must” visit place! Lindos village is everything you might expect from a Greek village – the blue of the Aegean, whitewashed houses, small narrow streets, friendly people, sandy beaches, breathtaking views, archaeological sites. This wonderful combination makes Lindos so inviting to every visitor! There are 5 things you can do in Lindos to have the best holiday experience.

The View – a Picture is worth a thousand Words

Whether you have a well-deserved 1 week holiday in Rhodes or you stop on the island for a day-visit during your cruise vacation, Lindos village must be on your “to see” list! Located approx. 50 kilometers (approx. 31mi) from the City of Rhodes, the white village of Lindos lies at the foot of a 116m steep cliff and is surrounded by beautiful bays. As you approach the village, the view will WOW you! It is truly postcard-like scenery! The white houses are covering the entire foot of the cliff, while the Acropolis sits at the top! To stop by the panoramic view point overlooking the bay is the first thing you should do in Lindos!

A place Blessed by the Saints

Being in Lindos will give you a sensation of belonging to an exclusive society and this experience definitely will remain as one of the best memory from Rhodes! Just a 5 min drive around the village will lead you to the bay that is said to be the most beautiful in Rhodes Island. The bay is named after the Apostle Paul who is said to have come ashore at Lindos after a shipwreck. During his 3 moths stay he preached Christianity to the Rhodians. Nowadays you will find a beautiful small chapel at the bottom of the bay, but it is really the view from the top that steals the show! Crystal clear turquoise waters, little yachts, swimmers, the steep cliff surrounded by small coves… no wonder that St. Paul’s bay has become a favorite place for weddings both for locals and foreigners.

A Labyrinth full of Surprises

As you stroll down to the village, you will have a feeling that you enter into a painting – a labyrinth of narrow cobbled streets revealing you monuments and treasures that Lindos is collecting and preserving throughout different eras. Probably because of the fact that Lindos in ancient times was the most powerful city-state in Rhodes (besides Kamiros and Ialyssos) it is the only one that has survived through different eras and still keeps its initial look. The rich cultural heritage and architecture of Lindos has changed little across times. This will be your visit into the past where the Ancient temples, buildings from the Middle Ages, Byzantine churches, Knights’ fortress, Cycladic style captain’s houses, vivid folk traditions and the magic blue of the Mediterranean meet. Have a slow walk, siga-siga – a Greek expression for slowly-slowly! Try to notice small details – door bells, pebbled door entrance steps, floors of little boutique shops, views over the roof tops… every corner has a story to tell, often dating back centuries!

Acropolis – the Archaeological Jewel

Although the steep hill might frighten you, do not worry, you will not even notice the climb! You will be so amazed by the beauty of the surroundings that wanting to explore it all, your feet will take you up in no time! If the path is too steep to climb, donkey rides to the top are available! The Acropolis of Lindos is a truly incomparable to anything else you might have seen! You can feel and see layers and layers of history! It is a natural citadel which was fortified successively by the Greeks, the Romans, the Byzantines, the Knights of St John and the Ottomans.
The Acropolis is a nearly triangular rock, 166m high, has 4 levels. Going through the entrance, you will find the first level with an important monument – a Trireme (a Hellenic warship) carved into the rock that dates back to 3rd or 4th century B.C. After follow the stairway built by the Knights that leads to the Castle above the gate. This is the second level and the steepest part of the Acropolis. You will then find another stairway that leads to the third level – a large Hellenic Stoa in a “U” shape, dated to the 3rd century B.C, is 87m long, has 42 Doric columns. The wide staircase leads from here to the Propylaea (means entrance). These stairs are also called the “stairs to heaven”, it will give you an impression that you are mounting into the clouds! At the top, on the forth level, it is the reconstructed Temple Athena Lindia, built during the middle of the 4th century B.C. From the very top you will be amazed by spectacular views of the surrounding harbors and the coastline.

Lindos… life on the Beach

Lindos can also prove to be an ideal destination for beach lovers! The bay of Lindos is proud to host one of the few sandy beaches on the Island. It is generally hotter in Lindos than everywhere else in Rhodes! Calm and refreshing water will be your escape from the summer heat, which at the peak of the season can reach 45°C (113°F)!!! Therefore do not set it as a goal to see all the historic monuments and ancient stones in the Acropolis or the village! If you will not get tired after climbing the cliff, it is sure that the hot Lindos sun will force you to look for a shade either in one of the inviting village cafés and souvenir boutiques or head directly towards the beach to dive into the fresh turquoise crystal clear Mediterranean waters!

19 Jun, 2016

Reasons to visit the nearby island SYMI

We booked two tours, to the east west coast and beautiful Lindos and we enjoyed every minute of it. A very comfortable ride. Manos has a wealth of knowledge which he expressed in very simple terms. He made the trip fun. He and his assistant Olympia were great with our Kids which we enjoyed seeing. I would recommend a tour with Manos especially if it’s your first time to Rhodes as it was ours. Fantastic time!

just returned from rhodes we used manos going for quite a few of our tours which i must add were very good prices much better than all the big tour operators. We actually arranged the majority of our tours prior to our arrival in greece , i emailed the company and the lovely reservation manager gunta e-mailed all the details and reserved all the tours that we wanted then she met us the morning after our arrival at the hotel we paid her the money she explained everything we needed to know and also made some other suggestions to us. which we decided to take the rhodes town city tour and it meant changing some of our other tours around but it was no problem gunta sorted all out it was a very easy and pleasurable experience. all the staff are extremely friendly and helpful and they just couldnt do enough for you. also very punctual at all times can highly reccomend.

I booked our tours online with Manos Going before travelling to Rhodes. I received a fast and helpful response to my initial enquiry and dealt with Gunta over email who answered my questions and completed my booking.

Printed off vouchers and took them with us ready to meet the tours once on holiday. We booked two tours. The Rhodes City Tour and The Lindos Express. Both were great value and we went in their modern Mercedes tour bus which was a very comfortable and well presented vehicle with air-conditioning. The driver was friendly and drove courteously with the comfort of his passengers in mind. The tour bus arrived at the front of our hotel at the times stated and dropped us back again at the end.

Rhodes City Tour
Afternoon/evening trip which departed at 16.00 and returned approx 20.00. Had a tour guide with us who was very knowledgeable. Visited Acropolis and Colossus before then taking us to Medievel town for a walking tour. Great sightseeing trip and we had free time at the end to explore shops/restaurants etc before the tour bus collected us.

Lindos Express
Departed at 09.00 and returned approx 15.30. The drive takes about 1 hour each way. Once there we had approx 4 hours of free time to explore which was more than enough time. Great way to visit Lindos.

Summary: Great value, reliable and friendly tours – a relaxing way to explore the sights

Just returned from the Lindos Express coach trip and would highly recommend this way to visit the beautiful town.

We booked at the office in Ixia and the staff were friendly and very helpful.

We were picked up on time at 9.15 in modern air conditioned Mercedes buses, the groups are small which is an added bonus of this trip and set off for the hour long journey to Lindos.
We stopped for 10 mins at a panoramic viewing point to take photos of Lindos and the acropolis before heading to Lindos.
We had 4 hours of free time in Lindos which was more then enough to enjoy a relaxing stroll around the acropolis and the tiny streets of Lindos.
We managed to walk up and down from the acropolis, have a browse of the shops and stop for lunch in our free time. We also had a drink in the ice bar which is the perfect way to cool down from the 45° heat.

We paid to go on this trip as it was such good value. We were picked up from our hotel on time, in a comfortable bus for an hour, then we stopped for a panoramic picture. Once in Lindos we had around 5 hours free time which we felt was a bit to long given how small lindos is and the heat. However reviewing the trip and the company itself it was really good, picked up on time and dropped off back at the door of the hotel.

Lindos has donkey rides, cute houses, souvenir shops and an ice bar! A must see!